Supporting charities close to your heart? It might be time to think again

Do your employees choose which charity your business should partner with? Or are you supporting charities because they are close to your heart?

Is this a problem? Well, it can be. It can result in charity 'giving' that says nothing about your brand or purpose.

Feeling good about your charity partnerships is a prerequisite, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't also serve your brand.

"Ahhh, it's the win-win", as one CEO said to me recently.

The qualities your brand stands for should be present in everything you do. And when they aren't, you make that brand claim less authentic.

And yet - take a quick look at competitors in your space: their CSR pages or their charity blog. Now, look at their company pages. Their values, product, purpose. Do the charity partnerships say anything about the brand? I'd hazard a guess that the majority do not.

Only 10% of those we looked at aligned their charity partnerships with how they positioned the brand.

Charity giving then looks like an add on.

So if you’re someway convinced that your charity partnerships could better serve your business, then here are some things to bear in mind:

The best brand fit is often out of sight
The best partner is not always the first one that comes to mind. Some causes simply have the resource and marketing horsepower to ensure they are front of mind. This can exclude partners with the potential for better impact and brand fit.

Passion + brand fit will stand you out from 90% of the competition
If you pick a charity partner on passion alone, then the partnership will likely lack brand punch. Like finding the perfect life partner - passion is great, but it’s usually not enough to elevate it to ‘special’ status or sustain the long term. Partnerships driven by feeling, built on brand fit and shared goals, will put you ahead of most competition.

The sweet spot
In our experience - the major charities can't by nature commit senior resources to every partner. Willingness to fit around you is less likely the larger they get (unless you have the big bucks to get senior commitment). And many smaller partners, who might have the flexibility and appetite to collaborate, don't have the resources or expertise to match.

There is a sweet spot, though. It’s what we look for - agile, specialist and impactful charities with the means and know-how to collaborate.

If you are persuaded that looking further afield could distinguish your business - please get in touch - we would love to hear from you.

Or if you are interested in doing it yourself, then why not check out Leah's blog here for some first steps to consider.